To adhere to compliance regulations by performing proper Know Your Customer (KYC), Know Your Business (KYB), and Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD), it is essential to ensure all entities—individuals or businesses—have been thoroughly screened before onboarding.
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An identifier—or specific number used in risk and compliance—can assist with performing these checks adequately.
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What is an Identifier?
An identifier is any piece of informational data about an entity (individual or business) that is recorded and used in a compliance database such as a watchlist or sanctions list. Identifiers can include names, addresses, dates of birth, national identification numbers, and more.
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What are Some Common Identifiers Used in Compliance?
To complete proper due diligence, the following identifiers should be accessed and verified when onboarding an individual or business:
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- Full legal name
- Registered address
- Date of birth
- National identification number (like an SSN in the US or a SIN in Canada)
- Jurisdiction of residence
- Jurisdiction of citizenship
- Associated website URLs
- Penalties imposed against a sanctions target
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This information is recorded in compliance databases, such as the OFAC Sanctions List, to prevent the onboarding of sanctions targets into business platforms.
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What is a Sanctions Target?
A sanctions target is any person or a business that is 50% or more owned, controlled by, or acting on behalf of a person listed in a recognized sanctions regulatory body, and is the target of any compliance sanctions or trade embargos established by the regulatory bodies, or “Sanctions.”
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Common sanctions lists used for compliance worldwide with identifiers for sanctions targets include:
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- US - Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)
- EU - The European Union (EU)
- UK - Her Majesty’s Treasury (HMT)
- Singapore - Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
- United Nations - United Nations Security Council (UNSC)
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Identifiers are included in all sanctions lists to assist with compliance adherence in countries with sanctions to ensure businesses and individuals on sanctions lists aren’t engaging in business.
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Perform Better Customer Due Diligence with Unit 21
Most companies in the financial sector are bound by sanctions regulations and can use identifiers to perform Customer Due Diligence to ensure they are adhering to them. In addition to sanctions adherence, many other regulations are imposed on these companies.
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To adhere to all fraud and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations, it’s best to use an infrastructure for risk and compliance like Unit21. Schedule a demo today to learn how we can help.
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